


That Night in October

by PistolOcelot



Series: Shine [1]
Category: Original Work
Genre: Angst and Hurt/Comfort, Animal Abuse, Child Abuse, Furries and Humans Coexist, Implied/Referenced Child Abuse, My First AO3 Post, Past Child Abuse, Superheroes, Superpowers, Unethical Experimentation
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-05-15
Updated: 2020-05-15
Packaged: 2021-03-02 20:35:05
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,663
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24162934
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/PistolOcelot/pseuds/PistolOcelot
Summary: After years of being experimented on and trained as child soldiers, two boys are freed by an army raid on the facility they were kept in. Once they are adopted by one of the soldiers that saved them, the two are given a chance to live a better. However, the scars of the past still linger even after more than a decade after that fateful October night. (CW: child abuse and childhood trauma)
Series: Shine [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1756555
Kudos: 1





	That Night in October

_Date: 3 October 2011_

_Time: 21:24_

_Location: Winter Feathers Research Facility in Adamalia_

"Neema come here! We've found more children!".  
  
A soldier with a pistol in hand shouted as he stood in at the doorway of a room with many bunk beds. He found and turned the light switch, only to have barely any of the lights turn on. Within each bunk-bed laid children of varying species with most of the kids shaking.  
  
A lioness soldier stepped into the doorframe as she looked at the kids. Shocked and disgusted at the sight before her, Neema covered her mouth to hide her biting her lip. Upon a closer look, the two soldiers noticed the children had injuries. Most of the twelve children either had bruises, black eyes, cuts, bandages, or some other sign of abuse.   
  
They also saw that the room's poor condition. The corners of the ceilings had leaks. The floor consists of wood sticking out. Bugs and other insects scurried across the floor and walls. The seven bunk beds in the room were the only things in decent shape.  
  
The human soldier had mumbled profanities under his breath in disgust. Neema did not know whether to be angry or be sad thinking about what these children had to go through. Some children got out of bed and moved closer to the wall. Meanwhile, some others covered themselves with their sheets. The lioness realized they were startling the kids.  
  
"Charlie put your gun away," Neema said in a deep African accent.  
  
Charlie nodded as he places his gun back into its holster.  
  
"Try to call in the medical unit and inform them to get ASAP," Neema continued.  
  
"Roger," Charlie as he walked out of the doorframe, "Daryl, go tell the medics to come to our location. We're at..."  
  
As Charlie left, Neema looked back to the kids as she tried putting on a warm smile to not scare them any further. Neema had to think of a way to reassure the children she meant no harm. She went down on both knees.  
  
"Hi there, children," Neema said as she extended her paw, "we are here to take you away from the bad people here. Come with me and you do not have to stay here any longer. "  
  
While some kids seemed to get less tense, still a part of them did not seem to trust the lioness. Regardless, one kid rushed over to Neema and hugged her. Others followed suit as even some hesitant kids moved closer to the lioness.  
  
"Hey, Neema! "  
  
The lioness looked and was happy to her team and doctors coming from the left of the hallway.  
  
"Bless you, Yahweh," Neema prayed silently, "Charlie, were there any other kids?"  
  
"Yeah, the others found some in secret basements. They are already loaded into the ambulances, and we did not find any more kids. The mission's complete, it seems. "  
  
The other adults made the kids nervous, prompting them to stare at Neema. She smiled and nodded her head.  
  
"Do not worry, children. These adults are my friends and they are here to help. "  
  
With some hesitation, some kids allowed the soldiers to take them by their hands or carry them as they walked to leave the facility. Neema was relieved that more kids were being helped. Before she could join her colleagues, she felt the need to double-check the room. At that moment something entered her mind as she examined the beds and kids. There were seven bunk beds, so there were two mattresses. Neema looked at the kids with her and the soldiers and recounted them. Twelve kids. This realization caused the lioness's face to drop like a stone in water.   
  
"Everyone wait!"  
  
Charlie and the rest of the squad paused as they turned to a tense Neema.  
  
"What's the matter, Neema," Sophia, a heron, and one medic, asked.  
  
"Charlie, recall how there were seven bunk beds in the room?"  
  
" Yeah," Charlie answered, puzzled, "so what?"   
  
"There are only twelve kids here. There must be two missing. "  
  
Charlie's face dropped at Neema's words.   
  
Neema turned to the kids, "Children, do you know if there are any more of you somewhere else? "  
  
The kids stayed silent for a bit before one of them, a female fawn, tugged at Neema's uniform spoke up.  
  
"Uh, well, there were two other kids. They were misbehaving and were put into the White Room,” stated the fawn softly.  
  
Neema did not like the sound of it. She pondered why the kids mentioned nothing before. Even now, finding these two kids remain the top priority.  
  
"The White Room? Where is it, darling? "  
  
The fawn pointed down to the end of the hallway, to a section of the wall with a detached piece of wallpaper hanging.  
  
"Charlie, you and the other escort the rest of the children to the ambulances outside."  
  
"Are you sure you don't need any help?"  
  
"I am fine just go. "  
  
As her colleagues took the children with them, Neema ran over to that area and pulled down the wallpaper to find a piece of wood that was nailed down. The lionesses wasted no time pulling it down as she was greeted with a metal door. Neema tried opening it but found that it was locked.  
  
Neema dug her claws into the door as she peeled it off its frame. The lioness gently let the mangled door down as she looked inside and was shocked at the sight before her. Within the padded room were two kids. What made Neema beyond disgusted was what the kids were wearing: both were blindfolded, muzzled, and put in straitjackets. With no hesitation, Neema grabbed both kids and ripped off their restraints, starting with the straitjackets. She felt both of them shaking as she continued to taking off the blindfolds and then breaking the muzzles.  
  
After taking off their restraints, Neema saw the two kids were a dog and a bird, respectively; both were probably no older than eight years old. The lioness saw they had lacerations across their bodies and had patches of fur and feather missing. Observing these injuries, it took all her being maintain her composure. This mission had been testing her limits as she witnessed the conditions and treatment of these kids. Rescues that involved children were harder missions for Neema to handle.   
  
"Oh Elohim, please help these children," Neema prayed quietly as tears ran down her face.  
  
Suddenly, the shaking became more vigorous as Neema sensed the two children shuffle in her arms. With a swift motion, the lioness wiped her eyes with her shoulders as the two kids open their eyes. Neema's heart broke as she saw the terror found in their eyes. It was indeed severer than the looks the kids in the bedroom had. Neema knew she had to soothe the two children down, so she performed what seemed like the most appropriate course of action: soothing the kids with coddling them. It was what her father and grandparents practiced this whenever she was distressed as a kid.   
  
"Everything is fine children," Neema whispered to the two, "We are here to take you away from the bad grownups and take you somewhere better."  
  
Neema stood up as she walked out of the padded room with the two kids still in her arms. She walked down the hallway as she made her way to the exit of the facility. Finally, the lioness had made it outside. She was greeted with the sight of police officers arresting scientists and kids being put into ambulances. The rest of her team walk over to her.  
  
"Oh thank goodness Neema, you found the other kids," Tyrone, a hyena member of the team, said in relief as he looked at the children in Neema's hold.   
  
"We should put them into an ambulance now," Shitoyaka, a secretary bird, stated.  
  
"Yes we should," Neema said dully.  
  
It was easy for the other soldiers to take notice of Neema's tone.  
  
" Hey, is everything okay," Charlie asked, realizing too late how ridiculous the question was.   
  
Neema sighed before she walked over to an ambulance, "We should head to the hospital with the kids. We will report Draco later in the night. "  
  
Thus, the lioness entered the ambulance with the two kids in her arms. The rest of Neema's team looked on as they followed her into an ambulance. After they had given the okay to the first responders, the doors were closed as the ambulance drove off. The doctors began managing the two kids' injuries after Neema delivered them over. She looked down on the ground as the doctors carry out their jobs. Her colleagues collectively sighed as they how sensitive sympathized with the lioness. These kinds of missions put her in a bad mood for the next few days afterward, so the team realized they would need to raise her spirits.   
  
That would have to wait as they had to report back to Draco, their Kobold commander. Charlie would do it himself as soon as they arrived at the hospital. As he thought about how to report the mission, he noticed Neema looking over at the two kids. Neema's face portrayed a look of sadness as she gripped her left paw with her right. He thought about what to say when Shitoyaka put her right-wing on Neema's shoulder in a show of reassurance.  
  
"I'm certain those two will be fine," Shitoyaka said with confidence, "we both know how professional the doctors are."  
  
Neema looked over at her friend as she laid back and eased up a bit.  
  
"You are right," Neema said as she closed her eyes, hoping to rest.  
  
Charlie sighed in relief as he did the same as his lioness friend to get comfortable. The man understood Neema would want to do something about the two children she rescued. He could merely hope she would be prepared for it. Charlie tried taking a nap to help pass the time.   
  
"That lady sure loves making life harder for herself."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sup. I hope y'all are doing well with everything that's going on. I have been hoping to get this story idea started for years now, but college has definitely made that rather difficult. With the quarantine and all, I decided to get to work on that since I finished online classes and it's probably gonna be a while since summer jobs open up. Anyway, I hope you found some enjoyment with the first chapter, and please feel welcomed to leave some comments and constructive criticisms. I know this chapter was less than stellar so I hope to take in criticism to improve my writing. May Yahweh bless you all.

**Author's Note:**

> I hope you all enjoyed the sort of Chapter 0 of my planned story series. It's been something I've been thinking for the past few years. But I couldn't find the time to work on it as college got in the way. So I'm hoping to get more work on it done. Stay safe and may Yahweh bless you.


End file.
